Car washing machine

ABSTRACT

According to a conventional continuous car washing machine in which one of the right and left side brushes is stationary, a roller conveyor which transports a vehicle to be washed is provided with wheel guides to maintain a spacing between a lateral surface of the vehicle and one side brush at a given value. Thus, there has been a problem that it is difficult to drive the vehicle to move itself onto the required position on the roller conveyor. The present invention which is intended to solve the problem provides a car washing machine comprising a stationary car washing machine body in which a pair of side brushes (8a, 8b) are disposed to be retractable in the transverse direction at a right angle with the direction of transport of a vehicle in order for washing at least the lateral surfaces of the vehicle (2), and a conveyor device (3) for transporting the vehicle (2) which is free of wheel guides and has a sufficient width to accommodate a plurality of different car widths.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a car washing machine comprising aconveyor unit for transporting a vehicle to be washed forwardly into astationary type car washing machine body and rearwardly out of the carwashing machine body, said vehicle being washed while it is being movedby said conveyor unit.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A known washing machine, for example one shown in U.S. Pat. No.5,432,974, comprises a tunnel-shaped stationary type car washing machinebody installed on a floor and having washing means for washing avehicle, and a pair of roller conveyors for transporting said vehicleforwardly into said car washing machine body and rearwardly out of saidcar washing machine body.

An example of said washing means comprises a first side brush which,while being rotated, is moved longitudinally and transversely to washthe front and rear surfaces and one lateral surface of the vehicle, anda fixed type second side brush which is rotated, not moved, to wash theother lateral surface of the vehicle.

Since said second side brush is of the fixed type, it is necessary tomaintain the distance between said other lateral surface of the vehicleand the second side brush at a constant value; to this end, the width ofthe roller conveyor associated with said other lateral surface of thevehicle is set at about the width of the wheels and a guide body for thewheel to guide the wheels associated with the other lateral surface ofthe vehicle.

According to the above arrangement, with the roller conveyor associatedwith the other lateral surface of the vehicle serving as a guide, thevehicle is carried onto the roller conveyor, whereupon the vehicle istransported by the roller conveyor into the car washing machine body,and washed by the washing means, such as said side brushes, while beingtransported by the roller conveyor, until the vehicle is transported outof the car washing machine body.

With the arrangement of said known car washing machine, however, sincethe width of the roller conveyor on one side is narrowed, there has beena problem that it is hard to drive the vehicle in carrying the latteronto the roller conveyor.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to solve said problemand provide a car washing machine so designed that a vehicle to bewashed can be easily carried onto the conveyor and that the length ofthe car washing machine can be shortened.

To achieve this object, the invention provides a car washing machinecomprising a tunnel-shaped stationary type car washing machine bodyinstalled on the floor and having washing means for washing a vehicle,and a conveyor device for transporting said vehicle forwardly into saidcar washing machine body and rearwardly out of said car washing machinebody, said conveyor device supporting and transporting said vehiclethrough locked wheels, characterized in that said conveyor device iscomprised of a conveyor free of at least a part of wheel guides forguiding the wheels of said vehicle.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a plan view, partly broken away, of a car washing machineaccording to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a view, partly broken away, of said car washing machine;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the front end of the car washing machinebody;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a deviation detecting device in said carwashing machine;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of an extension roller conveyor in said carwashing machine;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged plan view, partly broken away, of the extensionroller conveyor in said car washing machine;

FIG. 7 is a view taken along the line 7--7 in FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a side view, partly broken away, of the extension rollerconveyor in said car washing machine;

FIG. 9 is a view taken along the line 9--9 in FIG. 5;

FIG. 10 is a plan view of said car washing machine;

FIG. 11 is a front view for explaining the movement of a side brushdevice in said car washing machine;

FIG. 12 is a plan view of a side brush driving device section in saidcar washing machine;

FIG. 13 is a front view of the side brush driving device in said carwashing machine;

FIG. 14 is a side view, in longitudinal section, of the side brushdriving device in said car washing machine;

FIG. 15 is a front view, in longitudinal section, of a positioningdevice in said car washing machine, taken during positioning;

FIG. 16 is a block diagram of a control device in said car washingmachine;

FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing the operation of the sequence section ofthe control device in said car washing machine;

FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing the operation of the sequence section ofthe control device in said car washing machine;

FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing the operation of the left side brushcontrol section of the control device in said car washing machine;

FIG. 20 is a flowchart showing the operation of the left side brushcontrol section of the control device in said car washing machine;

FIGS. 21a, 21b, 21c, and 21d are schematic plan views showing themovement of both side brush devices and a carriage during the washing ofa vehicle in said car washing machine;

FIGS. 22a and 22b are schematic plan views showing the movement of theside brush devices and a carriage during the washing of a vehicle insaid car washing machine;

FIGS. 23a and 23b are schematic plan views showing the movement of theside brush devices and a carriage during the washing of a vehicle insaid car washing machine;

FIG. 24 is a plan view, partly broken away, of a car washing machine inanother embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 25 is a plan view, partly broken away, of said car washing machine;and

FIG. 26 is a perspective view of the front end of the car washingmachine body.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a car washing machine 4 is installed on afloor 5, said car washing machine comprising a stationary type carwashing machine body 1, and a conveyor device 3 for transporting avehicle to be washed 2 forwardly into said car washing machine body 1and rearwardly out of the car washing machine body 1.

Installed internally of said car washing machine body 1 are, as meansfor washing the vehicle 2, a pair of washing rocker brush devices 6, awashing top brush device 7, a pair of washing side brush devices 8, awaxing top brush device 9, a pair of waxing rocker brush devices 10, adrying top nozzle device 11, and a pair of drying side nozzle devices12.

The pair of rocker brush devices 6 which move transversely are used towash the wheels 14a, 14b, 15a, 15b and opposite lower regions of thevehicle 2. The top brush device 7 which moves vertically is used to washthe upper surface of the vehicle 2. The side brush devices 8 which movetransversely are used to wash the opposite lateral surfaces and frontand rear surfaces of the vehicle 2 (details will be given later). Thetop brush device 9 which moves vertically is used to wax the uppersurface of the vehicle 2. The two rocker brush devices 10 which movetransversely are used to wax the opposite lateral surfaces. The topnozzle 11 which moves vertically is used to dry the upper surface of thevehicle 2. The side nozzle devices 12 which move transversely are usedto dry the opposite lateral surfaces of the vehicle 2.

Disposed on top of the front surface of the car washing machine body 1is a supersonic sensor 13 for detecting the height of the vehicle 2.Disposed at the inlet port 1a of the front end of said car washingmachine body 1, as shown in FIG. 3, are a control device 17 comprising amicrocomputer and an inverter (details will be given later), and anemergency stop indicator lamp 18. Further, a vehicle detecting device 19comprising a photoelectric switch for detecting the getting-on of thevehicle 2 is disposed laterally of the start end of the conveyor device3, while an operation panel 20 is disposed in front of and on onelateral side of the conveyor device 3 so that a driver of the vehicle 2can select a car washing menu thereby.

<Deviation Detecting Devices>

As shown in FIGS. 1 through 3, disposed at the inlet port 1a of thefront end of the car washing machine 1 are a pair of deviation detectingdevices 21a, 21b for detecting lateral deviation of any part of thevehicle 2 on the conveyor device 3. As shown in FIG. 4, the deviationdetecting devices 21a, 21b each comprise a detector 22 which swingstransversely in the vehicle transport direction F (rearward) when itcomes in contact with a lateral surface of the vehicle 2, and a limitswitch 23 for detecting the swing of said detector 22.

Said detector 22 comprises a detecting rod 25 capable of swinging backand forth around the vertical axis, a coil spring 26 attached to thefree end of said detecting rod 25, and a bag-like protector cap 27 ofrubber fitted on said coil spring 26. Said limit switch 23 is insertedin a wall panel 16 and attached to a frame member 28. Installed on theframe member 28 are an urging spring 29 for urging said detecting rod 25in the direction G opposite to the vehicle transport direction F, and astopper 30 for regulating the range of swing of the detecting rod 25 inthe opposite direction G. Further, said detector 22 projects out througha hole 16a formed in the wall panel 16.

When the vehicle 2 does not deviate laterally outward of the conveyordevice 3 as shown by solid lines in FIG. 1, the vehicle 2, as shown bysolid lines in FIG. 4, is transported without contacting the detectors22 of the deviation detecting devices in the separated state therefrom,so that the limit switches 23 remain in the on-state. However, since theconveyor device 3 is not provided with guides for laterally guiding thewheels 14a, 14b, 15a, 15b, there are times when the vehicle gets on theconveyor device 3 in the laterally biased state, with the rear portionof the vehicle 2 deviating laterally outward the conveyor device 3, asshown by broken lines in FIG. 1. For example, if the vehicle 2 istransported with the rear portion of the vehicle 2 laterally deviated,the lateral surface of the vehicle 2 on the deviated side comes incontact with the end portion of the detector 22 of one of the deviationdevices 21a, as shown by a phantom line in FIG. 4, the detector 22 isswung in the vehicle transport direction F against the urging force ofthe urging spring 29 and the limit switch 23 is changed from the on- tooff-state, thereby detecting the deviation of the vehicle 2 out of theconveyor device 3.

<Conveyor Device>

Said conveyor device 3 comprises a pair of conventional main rollerconveyors 31a, 31b extending forwardly through the car washing machinebody 1 to the rear end of the car washing machine body 1, and a pair ofextension roller conveyors 32a, 32b rearwardly continuing from the mainroller conveyors 31a, 31b.

The wheels 14a, 15a on one side of the vehicle 2 are supported andtransported by one pair of roller conveyors 31a, 32a, while the wheels14b, 15b on the other side are supported and transported by the otherpair of roller conveyors 31b, 32b.

Further, as shown in FIG. 3, said main roller conveyors 31a, 31b arerespectively comprised of pair of conveyor frames 33, a plurality ofrollers 34 supported to be rotatable between the conveyor frames 33, anda motor (an example of driving device) 35 for driving these rollers 34to rotate, said main roller conveyors 31a, 31b not being provided withlateral guides.

Further, said one pair of roller conveyors 31a, 32a and the other pairof roller conveyors 31b, 32b are of the same widened width so as toaccommodate any car widths of different kinds of vehicles. Further,disposed at the start ends of the main roller conveyors 31a, 31b arefront slopes 39 for allowing the vehicle to smoothly get on the conveyordevice 3, while rear slopes 40 are disposed at the terminal ends of theextension roller conveyors 32a, 32b for allowing the vehicle 2 tosmoothly get off. Said main roller conveyor 31 is longitudinally dividedinto three parts; a front roller conveyor 36, an intermediate rollerconveyor 37, and a rear roller conveyor 38.

<Extension Conveyor>

The arrangement of said extension roller conveyors 32a, 32b will now bedescribed in more detail with reference to FIGS. 5 through 9.

The extension roller conveyors 32a, 32b are of the same construction,and a rotary drive shaft 41 is rotatably supported between the rear endsof the pair of conveyor frames 33 through bearings 42, with a drivingsprocket 43 integrally rotatably fixed on one end of said rotary driveshaft 41 through a key 44. A freely rotatably driven sprocket 45 isinstalled at the start end of one conveyor frame 33. Further, as shownin FIGS. 6 and 9, disposed between said conveyor frames 33 are aplurality of rollers 47 freely rotatably supported through a pluralityof support shafts 46. Intermediate sprockets 48 are integrally mountedon respective one end of these rollers 47, said intermediate sprockets48 being interposed between the driving sprocket 43 and the drivensprocket 45. Further, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, said rotary drive shaft41 has an end roller 49 fitted thereon, said end roller 49 and saidrotary drive shaft 41 are rotatable independently of each other throughbearings 50.

As shown in FIG. 7, a chain 51 is entrained between said driving anddriven sprockets 43 and 45, and upper and lower travel portions 51a and51b of said chain 51 are separated from each other by the intermediatesprockets 48. And the upper travel portion 51a meshes with theintermediate sprockets 48 from above. Further, as shown in FIG. 9, thelower travel portion 51b is supported and guided by a guide rail 52below the intermediate sprockets 48.

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, disposed between the end roller 49 positionedat the terminal ends of said two extension roller conveyors 32a, 32b andthe roller 47 disposed forwardly adjacent said end roller 49 is atransmission device 53 for rotating these rollers 47 and 49 in the samedirection. That is, a transmission sprocket 54 is provided at the otherend of said end roller 49, and a rotative force supplying sprocket 55 isprovided at the other end of the forward adjacent roller 47. Anauxiliary chain 56 is entrained between said transmission sprocket 54and the rotative force supplying sprocket 55.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, disposed at the start ends of saidextension roller conveyors 32a, 32b are a plurality of accessory rollers58 rotatably supported through support shafts 57. Rotation sprockets 59are mounted on the other ends of these accessory rollers 58, and arotative force supplying sprocket 60 is installed at the other end ofthe roller 47 positioned rearwardly adjacent the accessory rollers 58.And an auxiliary chain 61 is entrained between the rotation sprockets 59and the rotative force supplying sprocket 60.

As shown in FIGS. 5 through 7, the pair of rotary drive shafts 41 areinterconnected by a connecting shaft 62, and one of the rotary driveshafts 41 has a motor 63 (an example of a driving device) operativelyconnected thereto for driving the drive sprocket 43 through the rotarydrive shaft 41. Further, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 9, the conveyor frames33 are provided with covers 64a, 64b extending from the start end to theterminal end to prevent the chain 51 and auxiliary chains 56, 61 fromcontacting the wheels 14a, 14b, 15a, 15b of the vehicle 2 beingtransported. In addition, the height H of said covers 64a, 64bdetermined on the basis of the upper ends of the rollers 47, 49, 58 issuch that the vehicle 2 can easily climb thereover. Further, as shown inFIG. 9, a cover 66 supported by the frame body 65 installed on the floor5 extends between the extension roller conveyors 32a, 32b .

Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the length L1 from the rear end of the carwashing machine body 1 to the terminal ends of said extension rollerconveyors 32a, 32b is greater than the wheel base L2 of the longestwashable vehicle 2. Further, the extension roller conveyors 32a, 32b areprovided with a vehicle detecting device 67 (such as a photoelectricswitch or proximity switch) for detecting the vehicle 2 transported tothe terminal ends of the extension roller conveyors 32a, 32b. Further,disposed outward of one extension roller conveyor 32b is a lateral slopecontinuing from the rear slopes 40 to allow the vehicle 2 to smoothlyget off.

According to such extension roller conveyors 32a, 32b, the vehicle 2 istransported to the rear ends of the extension roller conveyors 32a, 32b,whereupon the latter are stopped. In this case, since the length L1 fromthe terminal end of the car washing machine body 1 to the terminal endsof the extension roller conveyors 32a, 32b is greater than the wheelbase L2 of the vehicle 2, the rear wheels 15a, 15b of the vehicle 2 arestopped rearward of the car washing machine body 1, and substantiallythe entire vehicle comes out rearward of the car washing machine body 1.Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 10, a driver drives the vehicle 2 to traveluntil it leaves the extension roller conveyors 32a, 32b. Since saidcover 64 is low and the cover body 66 and lateral slope 68 are provided,the driver may then turn the steering wheel toward the lateral slope 68,thereby transporting the vehicle 2 laterally out of the extension rollerconveyors 32a, 32b.

Thus, even when the front wheels 14a, 14b of the vehicle 2 have beenlocked, substantially the entire vehicle 2 can be reliably transportedrearwardly of the car washing machine body 1. Thereafter, the vehicle 2can be safely and smoothly transported out of the extension rollerconveyors 32a, 32b.

<Side Brushes>

The side brush devices 8a, 8b, as shown in FIG. 11, respectivelycomprise movable bodies 71a, 71b, and side brush bodies 72a, 72bdisposed under said movable bodies 71a, 71b, and as shown in FIGS. 12through 14, they are disposed on the side associated with the carwashing machine body 1 through the side brush driving device 73.

Disposed on top of the car washing machine body 1 is a long guide rail74 extending transversely (widthwise) at a right angle with the vehicletransporting direction F. The guide rail 74 is formed with aridge-shaped guide portion 74A at the upper end thereof, with aninverted ridge-shaped guide portion 74B at the lower end thereof, andwith a groove portion 74C on one lateral surface thereof. Further, theguide rail 74 comprising the portions 74A through 74C is formed byextrusion-molding aluminum which is then cut into required lengths.

Support shaft 76 extends lengthwise from the opposite ends of said guiderail 74, said support shafts 76 being supported at the car washingmachine body 1 through bearings 77, whereby said guide rail 74 isrotatable around a transverse axis 78. In addition, the rotation iseffected against the force of a pair of springs 79, and the neutralposition is maintained by the elastic force of the springs 79.

A movable body 80 is provided which is movable as it is supported andguided by said guide rail 74, said movable body 80 being C-shaped in aside view and supported and guided by a plurality of upper rollers 81capable of abutting from above against said ridge-shaped guide portion74A and a plurality of lower rollers 82 capable of abutting from belowagainst said inverted ridge-shaped guide portion 74B. Said movablebodies 80 have vertical bearings 83 attached thereto, said bearings 83supporting the shafts of said side brush bodies 72a, 72b; thus, the sidebrush bodies 72a, 72b are rotatable around the vertical axes 85.

The rotary driving device 86 for said side brush bodies 72a, 72bcomprises a rotation motor 87 attached to the movable body 80, a drivesprocket 89 attached to the output shaft 88 thereof, a driven sprocket90 attached to the side brush shaft 84, and a chain entrained betweenthe sprockets 89 and 90.

Weight urging devices 92a, 92b are provided for urging the side brushdevices 8a, 8b toward the car washing machine center K. That is, wires93a, 93b connected to the movable bodies 80 are drawn outward beyond thecar washing machine center K, said wires 93a, 93b being guided by guidewheels 94a, 94b attached to the car washing machine body 1 and thenbeing connected to weights 95a, 95b positioned in the car washingmachine body 1.

A support device 96 supports a feeder line for said side brush devices8a, 8b, that is, for the movable body 80. The support device 96comprises an arm 98 swingably attached to the car washing machine body 1through a vertical shaft 97, and a link 100 relatively swingablyconnected to the free end of said arm 98 through a vertical pin 99, thefree end of said link 100 being connected to the movable body 80 througha vertical pin 101.

The guide rails 74 have operating devices 102 for transversely movingthe side brush devices 8a, 8b through said movable bodies 80 andtransversely positioning the same. The operating device 102 comprises amoving motor 104 attached to the inner end of the guide rail 74 througha bracket 103, a drive sprocket 105 attached to the longitudinal outputshaft thereof, a driven sprocket 107 attached to the outer end of theguide rail 74 through a bracket 106, a drive chain entrained between thesprockets 105 and 107, and an operatively connecting device 109 foroperatively connecting said drive chain 108 to said movable body 80.

The operatively connecting device 109, as shown in FIG. 15, comprises atransmission member 110 associated with the drive chain 108, a drivenmember 111 opposed to said transmission member 110 from the outside andassociated with the movable body 80, and a proximity detecting device112 for detecting the abutment between the members 110 and 111, andallows said movable body 80 to move relative to the drive chain 108 awayfrom the car washing machine center K.

That is, the transmission member 110 comprises a rod body 113 integratedwith (or forming a part of) the drive chain 108, a sleeve body 114fitted on said rod body 113, a notch 115 and a bolt which allow relativemovement of the two members 113 and 114 in a given range, a coil spring117 urging the two members 113 and 114 away from each other, and atransmission side plate body 118 fixed to the outer end of said sleevebody 114.

Further, the driven member 111 comprises a driven side plate body 119continuously extending from said movable body 80 and fitted on the drivechain 108, and an annular bush body 120 fixed to the inner surface ofsaid driven side plate body 119. And said proximity detecting device 112is attached to the driven side plate body 119 through a bracket 121,said proximity detecting device 112 being in the form of a proximityswitch arranged such that, as shown in broken line, when thetransmission side plate body 118 and bush body 120 come in contact witheach other, the outer surface of the driven side plate body 118 causesdetection. Further, a closed limit detecting device 122 is providedwhich comprises a proximity switch for detecting the arrival of themovable body 80 at the end of the guide rail 74 associated with the carwashing machine body 1. An opened limit detecting device 123 is providedwhich comprises a proximity switch for detecting the arrival of themovable body 80 at the outer end of the guide rail 74, and a pulseencoder 124 is mounted on the moving motor 104. Further, there is a rearinclination detecting device 125 comprising a limit switch for detectingthe rearward inclination of a flange 75.

According to said side brush devices 8a, 8b, the side brush bodies 72a,72b are rotated around the vertical axes 85 by rotating the side brushshaft 84 by the rotating motor 87, and the shock produced when they comein contact with the front and rear surfaces of the vehicle 2 is absorbedas the guide rail 74 turns around the transverse axis 78. In this case,the pair of guide rails 74 independently turn around the transverse axes78, so that even if there is a time lag between the respective contactactions of the side brush bodies 72a, 72b (due to the inclinationresulting from the irregular stop positions of vehicles), they areturned according to such time lag in response to the shock, realizingsatisfactory followability, thereby preventing the side brush bodies72a, 72b from being unduly loaded.

Further, the forward rotation of the moving motor 104 forwardly movesthe drive chain 108 through the drive sprocket 105. The forward movementof said drive chain 108 outwardly moves the transmission member 110 ofthe operatively connecting device 109, thus integrally moving the drivenmember 111 abutting against the transmission side plate body 118 of thetransmission member 110 through the bush body 120. At the time of thisabutment, the rod body 113 is moved against the force of the coil spring117 with respect to the sleeve body 114, whereby the shock produced uponabutment is mitigated. In this manner, the side brush devices 8a, 8b canbe moved away from the car washing machine center K.

And through reverse operation, the side brush devices 8a, 8b can bemoved toward the car washing machine center K. That is, the reverseoperation of the moving motor 104 reversely moves the drive chain 108through the drive sprocket 105, thus inwardly moving the transmissionmember 110 of the operatively connecting device 109. Then, since themovable body 80 is under an urging force due to the weight urging device92, the driven member 111 abutting against the transmission member 110is integrally moved; thus, approaching movement can be attained.

Further, as shown in FIG. 15, when the bush body 120 fitted on the drivechain 108 is moved away from the transmission side plate body 118, theproximity detecting device 112 turns off.

<Control Arrangement>

A control program for said side brush devices 8a, 8b and roller conveyordevice 3 is shown in FIG. 16.

As shown in the control block diagram of FIG. 16, connected to thecontrol device 17 are: an operation panel 20; a supersonic sensor 13;limit switches 23a, 23b for the deviation detecting devices; a vehicledetecting device 19 for the front roller conveyor; a vehicle detectingdevice 67 for the extension roller conveyor; closed limit detectingdevices 122a, 122b, opened limit detecting devices 123a, 123b, pulseencoders 124a, 124b, and rear inclination detecting device 125a, 125bwhich are provided for the side brush devices 8a, 8b; an emergency stopindicator lamp 18; a motor 35 for roller conveyors 36, 37, 38; a motor63 for the extension roller conveyor; and rotating motors 87a, 87b torotate the side brush devices 8a, 8b and moving motors 104a, 104b tomove the side brush devices 8a, 8b.

The control device 17 comprises: travel drive sections 131-134 in theform of inverters corresponding to the roller conveyors 35, 36; anextension roller conveyor control section 135; moved position detectingsections 136a, 136b; a left side brush control section 137 beingconnected to a closed limit detecting device 122a, an opened limitdetecting device 123a, a proximity detecting device 112a and a movedposition detecting section 136, and used to drive the rotating motor 87band moving motor 104; a right side brush control section 138 beingconnected to said closed limit detecting device 123b, an opened limitdetecting device 122b, a proximity detecting device 112b and the movedposition detecting section 136b, and used to drive the rotating motor87b and moving motor 104b; a sequence section 139 being connected to anoperation panel 20, a supersonic sensor 13, a vehicle detecting device19 for the front roller conveyor, a vehicle detecting device 67 for theextension roller conveyor, and rear inclination detecting devices 125a,125b for the side brush devices 8a, 8b, and used to coordinatinglycontrol the travel drive sections 131-133, an extension roller conveyorcontrol section 135, a left side brush control section 137 and a rightside brush control section 138; and an emergency stop section 140.

Said extension roller conveyor control section 135, moved positiondetecting sections 136a, 136b, left side brush control section 137,right side brush control section 138, and sequence section 139 areconstituted by a microcomputer.

Connected to said emergency stop section 140 are the limit switches 23a,23b and emergency indicator lamp 18 for the deviation detecting device.When at least one of these limit switches 23a, 23b is turned off, theemergency indicator lamp 18 is lighted and an emergency stop signal isfed to the extension roller conveyor control section 135, left sidebrush control section 137, right side brush control section 138, andsequence section 139. Upon receiving said emergency stop signal, theextension roller conveyor control section 135, left side brush controlsection 137, right side brush control section 138, and sequence section139 bring all motors that are being driven to an emergency stop.

Connected to said extension roller conveyor control section 135 are thevehicle detecting device 67 for the extension roller conveyor and thetravel drive section 134 for the motor 63 of the extension rollerconveyor. When the vehicle detecting device 67 is actuated, that is,when the vehicle 2 is transported onto the extension roller conveyors32a, 32b, a stop signal is fed to the travel drive section, and when thevehicle detecting device 67 is turned off, that is, when the vehicle 2is transported out of the extension roller conveyors 32a, 32b, a drivesignal is fed to the travel drive section 134 after a predeterminedtime, thereby driving the extension roller conveyors 32a, 32b.

Said moved position detecting sections 136a, 136b count the pulsesignals (addition when the movable bodies 71a, 71b are moving in theseparating direction, and subtraction when they are moving in theapproaching direction) of the pulse encoders 124a, 124b from the closedlimit positions of the movable bodies 71a, 71b, so as to detect thepositional data αa, αb from the closed limit positions of the movablebodies 71a, 71b, and feed said positional data to the left and rightside brush devices 137 and 138.

A detailed description will now be given of the control operation of thesequence section 139, and the left and right side brush devices 8a, 8b,along with the action of the entire car washing machine in washing thevehicle 2, with reference to the flowchart for the sequence section 139in FIGS. 17 and 18, and the flowchart for the left side brush controlsection 137 in FIGS. 19 and 20. In addition, the operation of the rightside brush control section 138 is the same as (but symmetrical to) thatof the left side brush control section 137, so that a descriptionthereof will be omitted. In addition, the side brush devices 8a, 8b, asshown in FIG. 1, are on standby in lateral end positions spaced from thecenter of the car washing machine body 1.

First, the driver of the vehicle 2 moves the vehicle 2 to the operationpanel 20, sets the menu and then drives it onto the front rollerconveyor 36, whereupon he stops the vehicle.

The sequence section 139 confirms that the car washing menu has beendetermined by the operation panel 20 (step-A1) and when it confirms theoperation of the vehicle detecting device 19 (step-A2), it feeds a startsignal to the side brush control sections 137, 138 (step-A3) and feeds atravel instruction signal to the travel drive sections 131, 132 for thefront and intermediate roller conveyors. (step-A4). Subsequently, itconfirms whether or not the vehicle detecting device 67 for theextension roller conveyors is off (step-A5), and if it is off, sequencesection feeds a travel instruction signal to the travel drive section133 for the extension roller conveyors (step-A6).

When the left side brush control section 137, as shown in FIG. 19,receives said start signal (step-B1), it drives the rotating motor 87a(step-B2), forwardly rotating the drive motor 104 to rotate the drivechain in one direction, moving the transmission member 110 toward thecar washing machine body center K (step-A3), and when the closed limitdetecting device 122a is operated (step-B4), it stops the rotation ofthe moving motor 104a (step-B5).

As shown by phantom lines in FIG. 21 (a), the side brush devices 8a, 8bare moved toward the car washing machine body center K under the urgingforce of the weights 95a, 95b, and stopped at the closed limit position.At this time, since the driven member 111 is moved while abuttingagainst the transmission member 110, the proximity detecting device 112is turned on.

The travel drive sections 131-133 for the main roller conveyor drive themotor 35 and hence the roller conveyors 31a, 31b according to the travelinstruction signal, whereby the vehicle 2 starts advancing.

Then, when the front surface of the vehicle 2 contacts the side brushbodies 72a, 72b and one of the rear inclination detecting devices 125a,125b is actuated (step-A7), the sequence section 139 feeds a stopinstruction signal to the travel drive sections 131-133 for the mainroller conveyor (step-A8), a front car surface washing start signal tothe left side brush control section 137 (step-A9), and a front carsurface washing start signal to the right side brush control section 138after a given period of time so as to prevent the left and right sidebrush devices 8a and 8b from interfering with each other (step-A10).

The travel drive sections 131-133 for the main roller conveyor stop themotor 35 and hence the roller conveyors 31a, 31b according to the stopinstruction signal, whereby the vehicle 2 stops.

<Washing of Front Surface 2c of Vehicle 2>

When the left side brush control section 137 receives the front carsurface washing start signal (step-B6), it reversely drives the movingmotor 104a of the left side brush device 8a to rotate the drive chain inthe other direction, moving the transmission member 110 in the directionaway from the car washing machine body center K (step-B7), and when theopened limit detecting device 122a is actuated (step-B8), it stops therotation of the moving motor 104a (step-B9), and feeds a front carwashing completion signal to the sequence section 139 (step-B10).

Thus, in the side brush devices 8a, 8b, the transmission member 110pushes the driven member 111 against the urging force of the weights95a, 95b, so that, as shown by phantom lines in FIG. 21(b ), the sidebrush devices 8a, 8b are moved in the direction away from the carwashing machine body center K, whereby substantially the left half ofthe front surface 2c of the vehicle 2 is washed by one side brush device8a, while substantially the right half of the front surface 2c of thevehicle 2 is washed by the other side brush device 8b.

When the sequence section 139 receives a front car surface washingcompletion signal from the side brush control sections 137, 138(steps-A11, A12), it feeds a lateral car surface washing start signal tothe side brush control sections 137, 138 (step-A13), and a stopinstruction signal to the travel drive sections 131-133 for the mainroller conveyor (step-A14). Subsequently, whether or not the supersonicsensor 13 is off is confirmed (step-A15), and if it is off, a stopinstruction signal is fed to the travel drive section 131 for the frontconveyor (step-A16), and the counting of the time t is started(step-A17). When this time count t equals to a predetermined time T(step-A18), a stop instruction signal is fed to the travel drivesections 132, 138 for the intermediate and rear roller conveyors(step-A19), and a rear car surface washing start signal is fed to theside brush control sections 137, 138. (step-A20).

The travel drive sections 131-133 for the main roller conveyor drive theroller conveyors 31a, 31b according to the travel instruction signal, sothat the vehicle 2 starts advancing. Further, the travel drive section131 for the front roller conveyor stops the driving of the frontconveyor 36 according to the stop instruction signal, and the traveldrive sections 132, 133 for the intermediate and rear roller conveyorsstop the driving of the intermediate and rear roller conveyors 37, 38according to the stop instruction signal.

When the washing of the front surface of the vehicle 2 is completed bythe driving of these main roller conveyors 36, 37, 38, the vehicle 2 isadvanced again, and when the side brush bodies 72 are positioned on therear surface of the vehicle 2, the vehicle 2 is stopped.

<Washing of Lateral Surfaces 2a, 2b of Vehicle 2>

When the left side brush control section 137 receives said lateral carsurface washing start signal (step-B11), it forwardly rotates the movingmotor 104 for the side brush device 8a to rotate the drive chain in onedirection, moving the transmission member 110 toward the car washingmachine body center K (step-B12), and when the proximity detectingdevice 112a is turned off (step-B13), it stops the rotation of themoving motor 104a (step-B14), memorizing the present movement detectionposition αa of the moved position detecting section 136a (the memorizedvalue being referred to as αaK) (step-B15), subsequently reverselyrotating the moving motor 104 to rotate the drive chain in the otherdirection, moving the transmission member 110 in the direction away fromthe car washing machine body center K (step-B16). When the movementdetection position αa of the moved position detecting section 136 isequal to αaK+β! (where β is a positive predetermined distance)(step-B17), the rotation of the moving motor 104 is stopped (step-B18).At this time, the proximity detecting device 112 is restored to theon-state.

Then, whether or not a rear portion washing start signal is received(step-B19) is confirmed, and if it is not received, it is confirmedwhether or not a "brush closing" signal to be later described isreceived from the right side brush control section 138 (step-B20). Whenthis "brush closing" signal is not received, it is confirmed whether ornot the proximity detecting device 112 is off (step-B21). If theproximity detecting device 112a is off, a "brush closing" signal is fedto the right side brush control section 138 (step-B22), saidsteps-B15-B18 being repeated.

In the step-B20, when the receiving of the "brush closing" signal isconfirmed, the moving motor 104a for the left side brush device 8a isforwardly rotated to rotate the drive chain in one direction, moving thetransmission member 110 toward the car washing machine body center K(step-B23). When the proximity switch 112a is turned off (step-B24), therotation of the moving motor 104 is stopped (step-B25), saidsteps-B15-B18 being repeated.

Thus, in the side brush devices 8a, 8b, the moving motors 104 areforwardly rotated to rotate the drive chains 108 in one direction,moving the transmission members 110 toward the car washing machine bodycenter K. As shown by phantom lines in FIG. 21(c), the side brushdevices 8a, 8b are moved toward the car washing machine body center Kunder the urging force of the weights 95a, 95b, until they abut againstthe lateral surfaces 2a, 2b of the vehicle 2, whereupon they arestopped. In this state, however, the side brush devices 8a, 8b are tooclose to the vehicle 2. And immediately thereafter, the transmissionmember 110 is once moved away from the driven member 111 toward the carwashing machine body center K and the proximity detecting device 112 isswitched to the off-state. Thereby, the moving motor 104 is reverselyrotated a predetermined number of revolutions, moving the drive chain108 in the other direction, moving the transmission member 110 away fromthe car washing machine body center K by a predetermined distance β. Asshown in FIG. 21(d), the transmission member 110 abuts against thedriven member 111, pushing the driven member 111 against the urgingforce of the weights 95a, 95b, so that the side brush devices 8a, 8b aremoved away from the car washing machine body center K by thepredetermined distance β. Thereby, the distance between one side brushdevice 8a and one lateral surface 2a of the vehicle 2, and the distancebetween the other side brush device 8b and the other lateral surface 2bof the vehicle 2 can be adjusted to the respective optimum values.

And while the vehicle 2 is being transported, the lateral surfaces 2a,2b of the vehicle 2 are washed by the side brush devices 8a, 8b.

In the case where the vehicle 2 is being transported as it is deviatedto one side with respect to the center of the car washing machine body1, first, one side brush device 8a abuts against one lateral surface 2aof the vehicle 2 and moves a predetermined distance β in the direction Baway from the center of the car washing machine body 1, and a littlelater the other side brush device 8b abuts against the other lateralsurface 2b of the vehicle 2 and moves the predetermined distance β inthe direction B away from the center of the car washing machine body 1.Thus, even if the vehicle 2 is deviated to one side, the distancesbetween the side brush devices 8a, 8b and the lateral surfaces 2a, 2b ofthe vehicle 2 can be adjusted to optimum values.

Further, as shown in FIG. 22, in the case where said vehicle 2 is beingtransported as it is inclined with respect to the vehicle transportdirection F, one side brush device 8a (8b) is pushed by one lateralsurface 2a (2b) of the vehicle 2 to move in the direction away from thecar washing machine body center K, while the other side brush 8b, (8a)is spaced from the other lateral surface 2b (2a) of the vehicle 2. Asshown in FIG. 22(a), when the transmission member 110 is spaced from thedriven member 111 as the side brush device 8a is pushed by one lateralsurface 2a of the vehicle 2, the proximity detecting device 112 isswitched again to the off-state, and in response to this switching ofthe proximity detecting device 112 to the off-state, the side brushdevice 8a, as shown in FIG. 22(b), moves again the predetermineddistance β in the direction away from the car washing machine bodycenter K, while the other side brush device 8b moves toward the carwashing machine body center K to abut against the other lateral surface1b of the vehicle 2, and when the proximity detecting device 112 isswitched to the off-state, it moves the predetermined distance β in thedirection away from the car washing machine body center K. Thus, even ifthe vehicle 2 is inclined with respect to the transport direction whenit is transported, the distances between the side brush devices 8a, 8band the lateral surfaces 2a, 2b of the vehicle 2 can be adjusted tooptimum values.

Thus, by moving the side brush devices 8a, 8b individually in thetransverse direction, even if the vehicle 2 is being transported as itis somewhat deviated in the transverse direction, it is possible tofully wash the opposite lateral surfaces 2a, 2b by the side brushdevices 8a, 8b without damaging the vehicle 2.

<Washing of Rear surface 2d of Vehicle 2>

When the left side brush control section 137 receives a rear surfacewashing start signal at the step-B19, it forwardly rotates the movingmotor 104a of the left side brush device 8a to rotate the drive chain inone direction, moving the transmission member 110 toward the car washingmachine body center K (step-B26), and when the closed limit detectingdevice 122a is actuated (step-B27), the rotation of the moving motor104a is once stopped (step-B28). Subsequently, after a predeterminedtime (some seconds), the moving motor 104 of the left side brush device8a is reversely rotated to rotate the drive chain in the otherdirection, moving the transmission member 110 away from the car washingmachine body center K (step-B29), and when the opened limit detectingdevice 123a is actuated (step-B30), the rotation of the moving motor104a is stopped (step-B31) and a rear surface washing completion signalis fed to the sequence section 139 (step-B32), and the rotation of therotating motor 87a is stopped (step-B33) to complete the operation.

Thereby, the side brush devices 8a, 8b, as shown by phantom lines inFIG. 23(a), move toward the car washing machine body center K, stoppingat the closed limit position. Subsequently, the transmission member 110pushes the driven member 111 against the urging force of the weights95a, 95b, and, as shown by solid lines in FIG. 23(b), the side brushdevices 8a, 8b move in the direction away from the car washing machinebody center K, so that substantially the left half of the rear surface2d of the vehicle 2 is washed by one side brush device 8a, whilesubstantially the right half of the rear surface 2d of the vehicle 2 iswashed by the other side brush device 8b.

When the sequence section 139 receives a rear surface washing completionsignal from the side brush control sections 137, 138 (steps-A21, A22), atravel instruction signal is fed to the travel drive sections 132, 133for the intermediate and rear roller conveyors (step-A23). When theoperation of the vehicle detecting device 67 for the extension rollerconveyor has been confirmed (step-A24), a stop instruction signal is fedto the travel drive sections 132, 133 for the intermediate and rearroller conveyors (step-A25) to complete the operation.

The travel drive sections 132, 133 for the intermediate and rear rollerconveyors drive the roller conveyors 37, 38 according to the travelinstruction, so that the vehicle 2 starts advancing. Subsequently, thetravel drive sections 132, 133 for the intermediate and rear rollerconveyors stop the driving of the intermediate and rear roller conveyors37, 38 according to the stop instruction signal.

When the washing of the rear surface 2d of the vehicle 2 is completed,the vehicle 2 is advanced again by the driving of these intermediate andrear roller conveyors 37, 38, and transported to the terminal end of theextension roller conveyor 32. Then, as the vehicle detecting device 67is actuated, the transport is completed. The driver of the vehicle 2drives the vehicle 2 out of the system by utilizing the lateral and rearslopes 68 and 38.

Driving the conveyor device 3 and the pair of retractable side brushdevices 8a, 8b by said control device 17 makes it possible to wash theouter periphery (front surface, opposite lateral surfaces and rearsurface) of the vehicle 2. Since the side brush devices 8a, 8b areretractable, the guide body for the conventional roller conveyor can bedispensed with, thereby making it possible to employ the conveyor device3 of the present invention. Further, even if the vehicle 2 to be washedis parked in a deviated condition to one side or inclined, the washingof the vehicle can be properly effected without damaging the vehicle 2.As a result, the driving of the vehicle to be washed into the system canbe facilitated. Further, the vehicle 2 can be parked without having totake care whether the steering wheel of the vehicle 2 to be washed ispositioned on the right-hand or left-hand side.

One side brush device 8a is transversely reciprocated over the range ofsubstantially the left half of the car washing machine body 1 while theother side brush device 8b is transversely reciprocated over the rangeof substantially the right half of the car washing machine body 1. As aresult of this arrangement, the transverse distances to be traveled bythe side brush devices 8a, 8b can be reduced and so can be the washingtime, as compared with the conventional type.

In addition, although the conveyor device 3 installed on the floor 5 hasbeen shown in the above embodiment, a pit 141 having an areacorresponding to the area of installation of the conveyor device 3 and adepth corresponding to the height of the conveyor device 3 may be formedto install the conveyor device 3 therein, as shown in FIGS. 24-26, sothat the level of the floor surface 5 becomes the same as the level ofthe upper surface of the conveyor device 3. According to thisarrangement, the front, rear and lateral slops 39, 40 and 68 which areused in the above embodiment can be dispensed with, and it is possibleto eliminate the anxiety felt by the driver as driving the vehicle 2 toget on and off the conveyor device 3 provided with the slopes. Further,as shown in FIGS. 24-26, in the front roller conveyor 36, a cover body142 which withstands the weight of the vehicle 2 with its load may beinterposed between the pair of roller conveyors.

What is claimed is:
 1. A car washing machine comprising a tunnel-shapedstationary car washing machine body installed on a floor, said machinebody having a front and a rear and provided with means for washing avehicle, and a conveyer device for transporting the vehicle from thefront into the car washing machine body and to the rear out of the carwashing machine body, characterized in thatsaid car washing machine bodycomprises therein: a pair of side brush devices which are retractable inthe transverse right-and-left directions at a right angle with respectto the direction of transport of the vehicle by the conveyer device andwhich wash at least lateral surfaces of the vehicle; and means forkeeping a predetermined distance between each of said pair of side brushdevices and the corresponding one of said lateral surfaces of thevehicle.
 2. A car washing machine as set forth in claim 1 wherein saidmeans for keeping a predetermined distance comprises:first urging meansfor urging the first side brush device which is one of the pair of sidebrush devices toward the center of said car washing machine body, afirst pusher member abutting against said first side brush device andmoving the latter in the direction away from the center of said carwashing machine body against the urging force of said first urgingmeans, a first driving device for transversely moving said first pushermember, and a first detecting device for detecting that said first sidebrush device is spaced form said first pusher member; second urgingmeans for urging the second side brush device which is the other of thepair of side brush devices toward the center of said car washing machinebody, a second pusher member abutting against said second side brushdevice and moving the latter in the direction away from the center ofsaid car washing machine body against the urging force of said secondurging means, a second driving device for transversely moving saidsecond pusher member, and a second detecting device for detecting thatsaid second side brush device is spaced from said second pusher member;and a control device designed such that when the lateral surfaces of thevehicle are to be washed by said side brush devices, if said firstdetecting device detects that the first side brush device is spaced fromsaid first pusher member, said first driving device is controlled tomove said first pusher member a predetermined distance in the directionaway from the center of said car washing machine body, and if saidsecond detecting device detects that the second side brush device isspaced from said second pusher member, said second driving device iscontrolled to move said second pusher member a predetermined distance inthe direction away from the center of said car washing machine body. 3.A car washing machine as set forth in claim 2 wherein, when the lateralsurfaces of the vehicle are being washed by the side brush devices,if itis detected that said first side brush device is spaced from the firstpusher member, said control device moves said first pusher member apredetermined distance away from the center of the car washing machinebody and moves said second pusher member toward the center of the carwashing machine body, and if it is detected that the second side brushdevice is spaced from the second pusher member, said control devicemoves said second pusher member a predetermined distance away from thecenter of the car washing machine body, and if it is detected that saidsecond side brush device is spaced from the second pusher member, saidcontrol device moves said second pusher member a predetermined distanceaway from the center of the car washing machine body and moves saidfirst pusher member toward the center of the car washing machine body,and if it is detected that the first side brush device is spaced fromsaid first pusher member, said control device moves said first pushermember a predetermined distance away from the center of the car washingmachine body.
 4. A car washing machine comprising a tunnel-shapedstationary car washing machine body installed on a floor, said machinebody having a front and a rear and provided with means for washing avehicle, and a conveyor device for transporting the vehicle from thefront into the car washing machine body and to the rear out of the carwashing machine body, characterized in thata deviation detecting deviceis provided to detect if any part of a vehicle on the conveyor devicehas deviated from the conveyor device transversely at a right angle withrespect to the direction of transport of the vehicle, and a controldevice is provided to stop the driving of said conveyor device when saiddeviation detecting device detects such deviation of the vehicle.
 5. Acar washing machine comprising a tunnel-shaped stationary car washingmachine body installed on a floor, said machine body having a front anda rear and provided with means for washing a vehicle, and a conveyordevice for transporting the vehicle from the front into the car washingmachine body and to the rear out of the car washing machine body,characterized in that said conveyer device is comprised of a pair ofroller conveyors, and a cover body which withstands the weight of thevehicle and its load is disposed between said pair of roller conveyorsto span and cover the space therebetween.